Should I put low investment activities on my app?

Answered

You'll be given 10 slots in the Activities section of the Common App - you don't necessarily need to fill all 10 spots, but the most competitive applicants will have 8-10 activities (keep in mind that most activities are seasonal, so they're not necessarily doing 8-10 things at once!).

Whether or not you should include a low-commitment EC depends on a few things:

1. Is there space for it? You should always list the highest investment ECs over any low investment ones. If you don't have a lot of ECs, then you may want to list it.

2. How do the rest of your ECs compare? If your other activities are significantly higher commitment, then it might make this low investment one look like a "filler."

3. Does the EC contribute to your Applications Theme? This is basically the overarching narrative of your application. For example, if you're hoping to highlight your interest in music and your leadership skills in your application, and this activity was volunteering with the elementary school orchestra, then you could list this activity. For more info on Applications Themes, check out this CollegeVine post: https://blog.collegevine.com/what-is-an-application-theme/